


Frosted Winters

by JessicaMDawn



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Coming of Age, Divorce, F/M, First Date, Graduation, Growing Up, M/M, Marriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-22
Updated: 2013-02-07
Packaged: 2017-11-26 13:15:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/650889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JessicaMDawn/pseuds/JessicaMDawn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jamie was the first child to believe in Jack and Jack will always be there for Jamie, through the good times and the bad, as Jamie grows and learns and changes. Light Jack/Jamie.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Eleven

**Author's Note:**

> This is a coming of age type of story for Jamie Bennett, and how Jack Frost helps him throughout the changes in his life. It becomes more Jack/Jamie as the story goes on, as Jamie gets older.

 

Graphic courtesy of [LunarFlare14](../../../../users/Lunarflare14)

* * *

Ever since Easter, when Spring began, Jamie has been itching for winter.

He lost two more teeth over the course of the year, but no amount of staying up late let him see the Tooth Fairy. He tried so hard, even drank some of his father's coffee (though it made him gag), but he still fell asleep without seeing a wink of green or pink. In the morning, as expected, there was a quarter under his pillow.

He also never saw the Sandman, though he was certain the golden man was the reason why he could never stay awake at night. Jamie never saw the golden sand light up the night sky like he had Easter night.

Logically, he never saw Santa or the Easter Bunny. Those holidays hadn't happened yet since that magical night. Jamie remembered them vividly, anyway, and waited with baited breath for his chance to see them again.

But as the year dragged on, Jamie doubted. He never stopped believing, but he wondered. By the start of the new school year, Pippa had already forgotten Jack Frost was anything more than a saying about the weather. Jamie got detention for shoving her into her locker and got reassigned to a new locker down the hall from her.

He decorated his locker with different renditions of each of the Guardians. He even found some of Jack, though they were from old movies and never looked like each other. Some had even frightened him and he'd quickly left those pictures for nicer ones, like the stop motion figure from that old Christmas movie he'd found. He also drew his own pictures of the Guardians, as he remembered them, and stuck those up. That way, he could see them every day and remember and believe.

Then the wind grew colder. The leaves fell from the trees. Jamie woke up every morning, opened his window, and tested his breath. Could he see it? How cold was it? Would there be snow? Then one day, in early December, Jamie woke up to frost on his window.

Jamie dressed like his house was on fire, tore downstairs, grabbed his coat and hat, his sled, and flew out through the front door. He stopped before he'd reached the first step of the porch. Across the yard, perched on the fence and leaning forward on his staff, was Jack Frost. When the door burst open, Jack looked up, a hopeful expression on his face. He jumped up to stand on the fence instead of sit and Jamie smiled widely.

"Jack!" he called, and a wide smile spread on Jack's face. Jamie raced over to him as Jack hopped to the ground. Jamie smiled up at him. "I knew it! I knew you'd come back!"

Jack smiled back. "Would I miss having fun on the first snow day of the year with the first kid who ever believed in me? Not a chance."

Jamie frowned. "Was...was I really the first?"

"Yup," Jack said, almost like it was nothing.

Jamie felt torn inside. He suddenly remembered his first meeting with Jack, how shocked and happy Jack had been when Jamie said his name, saw him, spoke to him. Jack had been invisible before then. Had he been around before but no one known it? Ever?

Jack must've been so lonely.

Jamie shook his head. Jack wasn't lonely now, and he never would be again, if Jamie had a say in it. He smiled. "Come on, let's play!"

A wicked, playful grin took over Jack's face. "Of course! Let's go see how many people we can get into a snowball fight!"

Monty and Cupcake were already outside and hopping around their yards as if just waiting for Jamie and Jack to come along and collect them. The beaming smiles on their faces proved that their belief in Jack hadn't wavered in the least. Caleb and Claude had to be woken up, but they were happy to play. They didn't go to Pippa's. At Jack's questioning look, Jamie silently shook his head. Jack's face fell and he looked off toward Pippa's house sadly. Jamie wished he could make the world believe in Jack, forever.

They went to the park and Jack jumped on a bench. "Ok, snowball fight." He held up his right hand, a snowball already perfectly formed within. "Who's ready? Go!" he shouted without pause, tossing the snowball.

It caught Jamie in the face but it didn't hurt. He laughed and reached down to make his own snowball, his friends doing the same all around him. Once they all had one snowball in their hands, they looked at each other. Then five snowballs flew through the air toward the winter spirit. Jack let out a shocked yelp and flipped backwards off the bench to avoid the attack.

"Hey hey!" he laughed. "I'm not the only target!" He peeked at them over the wood and smirked. "But if you want to play that way, I can play that way."

In a moment there were snowballs flying at the kids. They laughed and ran for cover, grabbing snow for hasty snowballs as they went. They tried to hit Jack with a snowball, but even as he skipped and darted around the open park around them, they couldn't even graze him. Then Claude hit Cupcake in the back with a snowball and it became a free for all.

Jack ran around making snowballs for everyone as fast as a blink and then he stood off to the side, admiring his handiwork. A soft tug on his hoodie made him look down. He smiled. "Hey, Sophie! When did you get here?" he asked happily.

She giggled. Then Jack saw the girl standing behind Sophie. Her hair was dark as night but her eyes were bright blue. When she noticed Jack looking at her, she blushed and hid behind Sophie. Sophie noticed and tried to turn around to face her friend, but her friend held on to Sophie's shirt and wouldn't let her. Jack gave a gentle smile and knelt down.

"Hey. Come on. It's okay," he assured her. "I'm not gonna hurt you. My name's Jack Frost. What's yours?"

The girl peeked out from behind Sophie shyly. "Lin."

"Hi, Lin. You have great eyes. Did anyone ever tell you that?" Jack asked. Lin shook her head, her hair mixing with Sophie's. Jack laughed and Lin smiled. "Do you two wanna join the snowball fight?"

Both girls shook their heads. Jack frowned and scratched his head with his staff for a moment. Then he smiled again.

"Do you wanna make some snowmen?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah!" Lin cheered.

Jack laughed and began to help them build by creating perfectly round snowballs to start with. "Now you just roll it around in the snow until it's as big as you want. Feel free to go crazy huge with it!"

Jack stumbled forward half a step when a snowball collided with the back of his head. He felt the cold particles land in the hood of his hoodie. He turned around and was faced with a mischievous looking Jamie Bennett.

"Jamie Bennett, you are asking for it!" Jack called out before floating away from the girls building their snow people.

Other kids showed up during the snowball fight. Jack was surprised when a lot of them looked up at him with shock and awe and joy on their faces. Kids as young as Sophie and Lin and kids as old as fifteen were able to see him. Not everyone who showed up could see him, but a great number could.

"We're still working on those guys," Jamie said, motioning to the group of non-believers, who had formed a coalition and a small snow fort for the fight.

Jack created a small pile of snowballs at Jamie's feet and reinforced the snow wall they were hiding behind. "So all those kids who see me...?"

Jamie threw a snowball and shrugged. "We told everyone about Easter. It took some work, but people started to believe. Most of Sophie's class believes in you."

Jack looked so touched. He just watched as Jamie threw snowballs for a bit, barely moving a muscle when snowballs collided with the snow wall or zoomed over their heads, brushing the tips of Jack's hair. After a few moments, Jamie held out a snowball to Jack.

"Come on, Jack. It's not like you to sit out of a snowball fight," he said, grinning as mischievously as Jack ever had.

Jack smiled and accepted the snowball. He stood up and tossed the snowball, with deadly accuracy, at one of the non-believing kids that was sort of just hiding next to their more active friends. Jamie saw the sparkles around their eyes as they laughed and reached down to quickly make a snowball to join in.

Much later, after the snowball fight; after Sophie, Lin, and another girl from Sophie's class named Margie made a whole village of snow people (with Jack's help); after sledding that started at the top of the hill and wound around the park and then back up the hill to start again without stopping; after snow angels and snowmen and women on the ground; everyone began to head home. One more kid believed in Jack than the day before. Jack smiled and waved goodbye to each kid that waved at him. Then Jack walked Jamie and Sophie home for the night.

Sophie was yawning her way up the stairs into the house for dinner when Jamie stopped at the first step and turned back.

"Jack?" he asked tentatively.

"Yeah?"

"Will you be here tomorrow?"

Jack shrugged. "I don't know. I have to help bring winter to the whole world. And it's always snowing in Russia, somewhere." Jamie frowned, his heart sinking. He loved playing with Jack. Everything was more fun with the Guardian there. "Maybe not tomorrow, but I'll do my best to come back a few times this winter, okay?" Jack said.

"You promise?" Jamie asked hopefully.

Jack nodded and smiled. "I promise."

Jamie smiled toothily in return and then hopped up the porch steps happily.

"Hey, Jamie?" Jack called quietly. Jamie turned around, still smiling. "Thank you. So much."

A shrug. "No problem. We're both Guardians, remember?"

Jack gave him a fond look. "Yeah. Yeah we are. Sleep well, Jamie. I'll see you around."

"Absolutely!" Jamie agreed.

"Jamie! Come inside! Dinner's ready!" his mom called.

Jamie faced his house. "Coming, mom!" He turned around just long enough to wave bye to Jack, and then he was inside.

He saw Jack on two other occasions that winter. Once on New Year's Day and once on the anniversary of when Jamie first believed, on the last snowy day before it all began to melt. But Jamie knew he would see Jack many more times in his life and he didn't worry. As long as he believed in Jack Frost, he would always be around.


	2. Thirteen

It was January, and Jamie was nervous. Nervous was good, though, right? Everyone got nervous the first time, right? He was pacing around outside the entrance to his middle school, wrapped up in a warm jacket and beanie, a thicket scarf around his neck and gloves on his hands. He was waiting.

Jamie glanced up at the sky. What was he doing? This was stupid. He was crazy. And he was probably waiting for nothing. He'd be left standing here, cold and alone, until the sun began to set and he finally gave up and went home. Why was he out here on a Saturday?

"This is stupid."

"What's stupid?"

Jamie jumped and whirled around. Jack Frost stood a few feet away, leaning on his staff lazily. He smiled at Jamie's wide eyes.

"Did I startle you?"

Jamie shook his head once, then nodded. "Sorry. I was thinking."

Jack stood up straight. "Thinking about what? You almost never look so serious."

Jamie tugged at the bottom of his jacket with nervous hands and looked down at the ground. "I-I asked Samantha on a-a-a-" he stuttered.

"On a date?" Jack asked, a tease in his voice.

Jamie blushed deeply and lowered his head further. "Yeah."

Jack laughed. "Jamie, that's fantastic!"

Jamie looked up at Jack through his bangs. "You-You really think so?" He asked quietly. "Because I felt like a fool when I asked her and we're only going to a movie and I've never been on a date before and I don't know what to do, Jack!"

"Whoa, whoa," Jack said and moved forward to put his hands on Jamie's shoulders. Jamie felt the cold of Jack's skin seep through his jacket but he didn't mind in the least. In fact, it was comforting. "Calm down, Jamie." Blue eyes locked with brown. "Don't over think it, or you'll end up embarrassing yourself. Just go with it. You'll be fine."

Jamie kicked some snow away from his feet shyly but never looked away from Jack's frosty blue eyes. Jack told him last year that he was over three hundred years old. Jamie didn't understand how he was that young. Comparatively, he was ancient, since Jamie was only thirteen, but Jamie had thought that the Guardians had always been around; that they were as old as the world. Still, thinking about how old Jack was...Jamie guessed he would know a thing or two about dating.

"Hey, Jack, have you ever dated anyone?"

Jack's eyes widened just a fraction and then he seemed to consider it, as if the thought of dating had never crossed his mind. He gave a slight squeeze on Jamie's shoulders and then stood upright.

"Um...No," he said at length. "Never had the chance."

Jamie frowned. "I mean, I know you couldn't date a human. You don't age. But...none of the other Guardians?"

Jack laughed. "Ha! I don't think you want to let Bunny hear you saying anything about me dating him," he teased and spun his staff over his head to catch with his left hand instead. "The only girl in the Guardians is Tooth, and she's more like the team mom, if you know what I mean. Bunny's too furry and uptight, North is old enough to be my grandfather, and Sandy...well, he's made of sand, you know?"

Jamie's eyes widened. "All the Guardians are guys?" he asked, shocked.

Jack shook his head, grinning. "The Guardians? Pretty much. But there are hundreds of spirits out there, Jamie. They take care of children too, just like me and North, but they aren't guardians. You ever hear of Mother Nature or Father Time?" Jamie nodded. "See? There are tons of girl spirits out there. They just aren't considered Guardians. Just think about mermaids! There are dozens of them!"

Mermaids were spirits like Jack? Jamie grinned and bounced on his feet. That meant he could meet a mermaid someday!

"Wait." His smile dimmed just a tad, which caused Jack's smile to dim as well. "But you've never dated any of them? In three hundred years?"

Jack shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm pretty young compared to most of the other spirits. Not to say I'm the youngest, but I'm pretty new to their 'club.' And besides, I was always too busy having fun and playing pranks. I didn't exactly make many friends."

He said it so easily, like it didn't matter. Jamie rushed the step between them and threw his arms around Jack. Jack let out a startled gasp and looked down at him. The younger male waited until he could feel Jack's cold on every part of him that was touching the winter spirit before he spoke.

"I'm your friend," he assured Jack as he pulled away. "And you're so great. I'm sure there are a line of girls that want to date you."

Jack smirked like he knew a secret, but he didn't share it with Jamie. Instead, he moved back on subject. "So, Samantha?" he asked, sounding almost sly.

Jamie blushed again. "Yeah. She passed me a note in math class telling me she liked me," he admitted. "I think it was actually her brother Ryan who sent it for her because she's so shy," his handwriting was atrocious and not at all girly, "but when I sent it back, she smiled at me."

"And you like her?" Jack asked, his voice not teasing but not serious. He looked very content.

Jamie shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. I mean, she's kind of pretty." Jack let out a soft snort but didn't say anything, so Jamie continued. "But I thought...I mean, I should see. So I said we should go see a movie." He looked up at Jack, searching for confirmation that he'd done well.

Before Jack could answer, they heard Jamie's name shouted at a distance. Both boys turned to watch as Samantha Rosen rushed over. Her light red hair was pulled back and up in a high ponytail, with her bangs cutely framing her face. She had faint freckles on her cheeks and bright blue eyes, almost like Jack's. She smiled widely at Jamie.

"Hi, hey, sorry I'm late. Ryan spilled his soda all over my shirt, so I had to change," she explained in a hurry, her cheeks a light pink from running in the cold.

Jack folded his arms on Jamie's head and leaned on him. Jamie tried to look up at him with a mild frown on his face. Jack just smiled.

"Hey, Samantha. You look cute today. New jacket?" he asked smoothly.

Samantha looked up at him as if seeing him for the first time. "Oh! Jack! Hi! Yeah, I got it for Christmas," she smoothed her hands down her jacket sides self-consciously. "Mom was going to get me the pink one, but I said I liked blue better, so she got me that one instead. She also bought me these new boots to match," she lifted her right foot and pointed at the blue boot with a smile.

"Are you ready for the movie? We'll miss it if we don't get there soon," Jamie said, not bothering to make Jack move.

Samantha smiled brightly. "Yeah!" She held out her hand. "Come on."

Jamie hesitated for only a moment before reaching out to take Samantha's hand. He remembered Jack's words. "Calm down. Don't over think it. Just go with it. You'll be fine."

Jack's arms slid off his head as Samantha pulled him off down the street. The brunette glanced back at Jack and got an encouraging thumbs up in reply. Jamie sped up just a bit so that he and Samantha were walking side by side instead of her pulling him and then glanced back again, but Jack wasn't there anymore.

He caught sight of Jack just before they entered the theater, perched on the roof across the street. Samantha held his hand through the whole movie. His hand got sweaty and stiff, but he didn't pull away.

He saw Jack again after he'd walked Samantha home. He wasn't sure about it, but Samantha seemed to like that he'd walked her home. She even gave him a kiss on the cheek before rushing inside with red cheeks. Jack flew by overhead as he was leaving Samantha's yard. The frost spirit waved at him and Jamie waved back, and then Jack was far away and gone again.

Jamie went out with Samantha one more time, to the forest to ice skate while Jack made sure it was safe. But at school Samantha liked to walk around holding hands and always sat with him and his friends at lunch, and Jamie never knew what she was talking about when she called him on the phone. She was angry when he broke up with her one month after their movie date, but Jamie didn't want to pretend to like being her boyfriend when he didn't. She didn't talk to him again for the rest of the school year. Jamie didn't get it.

Maybe he was just too young to understand girls.

Jack didn't come back to Burgess after the ice skating date that year. Jamie sort of wished he had. His mom was nice about his short relationship with Samantha, and his dad told him there would be other girls, as if Jamie was the one upset about the breakup, but Jamie wanted his best friend's advice. After all, at three hundred years old, Jack probably knew more than his parents about boys and girls. He would just have to wait until next winter, he supposed. That was a long way off.


	3. Fifteen

Christmas Eve was usually a time of celebration, of joy, of fun, of family. Lying in his bed that night, Jamie Bennett felt like none of that mattered.

He didn't look away from the mini-disco ball lamp as it cast multi-colored circles around his room, not even when he heard his window creak open. The cold nighttime breeze from outside didn't affect him nearly enough to move his heart.

"Hey...you okay?"

Jack's voice was concerned and confused. Jamie glanced at him, standing just inside the window with a small frown on his face, one hand still on the sill. He sighed and looked back at his desk lamp.

"Sorry. I don't...feel like playing today, Jack," he murmured.

"Ok, now I'm really worried." Jack silently padded over to Jamie's bed and sat down. "It's my first visit of the season and I don't even get a _smile?_ You're always happy to see me. What's wrong?"

Jamie sighed and sat up. His covers slid down to his waist on the bed. He stared at his lamp for a few more seconds before averting his eyes to his hands in his lap. "My dad's gone."

Jack started. "He's-Did he...did he die?"

A shake of the head. "No. He...left. Mom and him have been having fights a lot lately. Yesterday dad said he'd had enough and walked out."

There was silence for a few moments. Jamie kept his eyes on his hands.

"That's not right. It's Christmas," Jack objected at length. "I'll be sure North doesn't give him anything for Christmas, ey?"

That light playfulness in Jack's voice caused Jamie to lift his eyes. Jack gave him a hopeful look and a smile that showed his teeth. Of course. This was the same Jack that Jamie had known for five years. He was happy and always making fun from sorrow or fear. He was one of Jamie's best friends, especially since Claude, Caleb, and Monty had all moved away.

Jamie managed a tiny uplift of his lips. "Santa only brings gifts to kids," he said.

Jack shrugged. "I think he could make an exception. That coal doesn't get too much use otherwise, you know," he ended with a grin. "Too many kids being too good. I'd say that means they aren't having nearly enough fun. What about you?"

Jamie's smile got a little bit bigger. "You have fun all the time, but you're still good."

A shake of the head. "I hold the record for the naughty list," he revealed proudly.

"Really?"

Jack nodded. "Yep. All the way up until I became a Guardian. Now North doesn't even keep track," Jack half-whined. "Now he just says that whatever I do is part of my 'job' or something. I don't know, I just think it's fun to make people slip and slide around town."

Jamie considered Jack for a moment, his staff leaning against his shoulder and a happy smile on his face. He rolled his shoulders. "Hey, Jack?" Jack turned his head to see Jamie better. "Could you throw one of your snowballs at my dad?"

"What for?"

Jamie shrugged. "He's seemed so angry lately, and I remember you made Cupcake feel better by hitting her with a snowball, so..."

He looked down at his hands again. Was it strange to ask that? Jack was a Guardian of children. Did his powers even work on adults? Should Jamie not have asked? He felt like he should be mad at his dad, and maybe later he would be, but right now he was just sad and wanted his father back.

A hand ruffled Jamie's hair and he looked up into Jack's glinting eyes. "It would be my pleasure, Jamie." Jamie gave a half smile, his lips pulling up and to the right. "But right now, I've got a Christmas gift for you."

Jamie's smile turned curious. "You do?" Jack had never brought a gift before. He'd drawn pictures on his windows or made snow creations outside, and always made sure that any day he visited was super fun, but he'd never brought a gift.

Jack shrugged. "Well, sort of. Watch this."

He held out a hand and blew on it. A ball of ice formed in his palm. Jack covered the ice ball with his other hand and shut his eyes, rubbing his hands back and forth just a bit. He blew on his hands again as he opened his eyes. When he pulled his left hand back, there was a small ice dog in his hand.

"Wow, cool! It looks just like Abby," Jamie cheered quietly. "But, you know, younger."

Jack laughed and the dog seemed to come to life. It bounded around on his palm and then leapt off into the air. Jack blew toward it and Jamie watched a breeze, barely visible by the ice particles it carried, catch the ice dog and help it prance around Jamie's head. It gave Jamie a cold, wet lick on his cheek and then pranced up above his head. Jamie laughed and looked up while rubbing his cheek.

The ice dog gave one soundless bark and then burst into ice flakes. The light from Jamie's lamp reflected off the ice, bouncing multicolored beams around the room. Jamie's mouth dropped open.

"Wow."

The ice seemed never ending. More kept falling even after the dog's ice was long gone, leaving Jamie's room bathed in moving color. Jamie watched it for a few more seconds before turning around to face Jack, but he wasn't there.

"Jack?"

Mischievous laughter echoed from outside and Jamie rushed to the window. He leaned out and looked both directions down the street but saw no sign of the winter sprite. His shoulders dropped. Jack left so suddenly. He left like dad.

"I guess the fun's over."

"Never," Jack's said as he dropped into view from above.

Jamie cried out and fell backwards onto his butt. Jack laughed and Jamie couldn't help but laugh too. Jack flipped in the air and landed on Jamie's windowsill.

"What do you say, Jamie? Wanna try flying again?" Jack asked, holding out a hand. "I'm a lot stronger than I used to be."

"Yeah, because of me." Jamie smiled broadly and jumped up, grabbing his jacket and taking Jack's hand. It was cold and smooth in his own. And even though they only saw each other a few days each year, Jack's hand in his felt familiar.

Jack didn't say anything in response. He just pulled Jamie out through the window and then they were flying through the sky. Jack looked up toward the moon for a brief moment, then off into the distance. He whistled and a brisk wind caught them up in a swirling ride above the city. Jamie couldn't help but laugh outright in pure exhilaration. When the wind stopped, they were left hovering above a vaguely familiar building. It was Burgess's biggest, though still quite small, hotel.

"Do you want to see him?" Jack asked.

At once, Jamie understood. Jack had brought him to see his father. Jamie nodded without a word and they floated down to the small balcony attached to the window of a room. It was barely more than an ordinary windowsill; just large enough to stand on. Jack knelt on the wire railing that surrounded the small space while Jamie stood on the floor and reached forward toward the glass door.

The blinds were mostly drawn, but a small break in the curtains allowed the teen to see inside. The room beyond was dark aside from the slim light given off by a desk lamp. His father was seated at the desk, reading some sort of book. His bags were lying by the foot of the bed. He looked lonely.

"I know you said you'd give him some fun," Jamie said quietly, so as not to draw his father's attention. "But could you do me another favor?"

"If I can."

Only moments later, the glass door was opened by Jack's icy fingers. Then the wind was carrying them up and away again. It blew into the room through the crack Jack had made, and the curtains blew away from the window. They hovered just close enough for Jamie to see his father hurry to shut the door again and also to watch as he saw the decorative ice curling across the glass. The whole of it was frosted in Jack's traditional fern frost, except for a spot just at eye level. In that perfectly circular spot was an icy artwork shaped like a Christmas tree with the moon just above it.

His own little Jack Frost Christmas Specialty.

Mr. Bennett ran his finger through the frost around the image, but it didn't melt. Then a small smile lit up his features and he looked out the window to the moon up above.

After a few quiet minutes watching his dad examine the frost in awe, Jamie shivered in the air and Jack began to fly them back toward the Bennett house. It was a much slower ride than the burst of wind over, but Jamie enjoyed it. Looking down on the city while the winter wind nipped at his fingers, toes, and nose, Jamie felt happy. For the first time in months Jamie thought, _Everything's going to be okay_. Even if everyone else would fail him at times, Jack Frost never would. And that was enough to give him hope for the rest of the world.


	4. Sixteen

The following year, Jack found his first believer hunched up and hiding in the bathroom, his hands over his head. Jamie glanced up when Jack pushed the door open with his staff and revealed sad, if dry, eyes.

"Oh man," Jack breathed, shutting the door behind him. "You've got to stop being so sad whenever I visit. You're breaking my heart." It was said in a way that was obviously meant as a light joke, and Jamie managed to give him a little smile.

"Sorry, Jack," he said, rubbing at his dry eyes. When he lowered his hands, he sent a confused frown in the spirit's direction. "Wait. It's barely November. It hasn't snowed yet. What are you doing here?"

A shrug. "I felt like coming home. Thought maybe a little early winter was in store for Burgess."

Sorrow forgotten for a moment, Jamie focused on his wintery friend. "Oh yeah. You told me you were born in the lake. So Burgess is your home." He couldn't believe he'd forgotten that. "I guess it's just hard to imagine you staying in one place long enough to call it home."

He got a pearly white smile in response. "Yeah. I go pretty much wherever the wind takes me. But yeah, Burgess is my home." Jack's smile turned a bit more fond. "My whole family lived here once."

Jamie sat up straighter. "You have a family?" he asked, surprised but pleased.

Jack had a family! That meant he wasn't alone in the world, right? Except...he had been. Jack had told him as much. But his family...

Jack leaned on the door and glanced at the towel rack to his left. "Uh, had," he corrected. "Three hundred years ago."

"What happened to them?" Jamie asked, his voice coming out small.

"They died," Jack stated, and while there was a hint of sorrow in his eyes, his tone was conversational. "Tooth showed me Sarah's teeth. They all lived out their lives and then died. As all humans do."

Jamie's jaw hit the floor. "You were human?!"

Jack winced at the sudden volume and pitch of his first believer's voice. Jamie mouthed 'sorry' and Jack nodded.

"All the Guardians were human, or sort of, before they were chosen. Granted, I was a bit of a special case, because of my memories." Jamie made a mental note to ask what was special about Jack's memories later, but let his friend talk for now. "But yeah, we all lived mortal lives. Then, for some reason or another, the Man in the Moon chose us to be Guardians. Usually it's a choice to be made, Manny asks them to be a Guardian or spirit. A few of us, though...A few of us died. Some to age, some to illness, some to war," Jack explained, keeping his tone amiable even with the somber material.

Jack was alive once. He had a family, just like Jamie. Maybe Sarah was his sister. Had she been younger than him, like Sophie, or older? Did he have any brothers? He might have had a girlfriend? Or, it was three hundred years ago...maybe he'd been married? The thought seemed laughable but it made Jamie frown. He shook his head.

Had Jack always been this way: fun loving and free spirited? Did he play jokes on his friends? Was he popular in school? Jamie had Cupcake leftover from that Easter six years ago, and he made sure that he only made friends with people who didn't think he was crazy for believing in Jack Frost and Santa Claus.

How did he die? Jamie's brain supplied. Was he old when he died? Or, horribly, was he young? He looked eighteen.

"How...," Jamie started but trailed off. Jack wore a patient expression, like he knew what Jamie wanted to ask but, for once, wouldn't push it. Jamie swallowed. "How did you die?"

Jack's eyes searched his younger friend's face for a few silent moments. Then he seemed to come to a decision and took a deep breath.

"I drowned. In the lake," he revealed quietly. Jamie gasped.

He was born in the lake. God, why hadn't Jamie realized?

"It was early winter," Jack continued, interrupting Jamie's thoughts. "Sarah wanted to go ice skating, and I'd promised to teach her how. I taught all the kids in town how. Burgess was only a few houses big at the time, and I was the oldest." Jack smiled fondly. "I told stories about mythical creatures, funny ones. And I made sure that no one was left out of any fun activity going on in town. Life back then was hard, and I wanted everyone to be happy."

That sounded like Jack.

"Anyway, ice skating. I was a pro with my skates. I taught Sarah how to balance and how to move forward, how to stop. She was so shaky. Everything was great until I realized the ice was cracking under her skates." Both Jamie and Jack frowned. "I took off my skates, so I wouldn't cut at the ice when I moved, and so I wouldn't slide so much. I just kept thinking that I had to get Sarah to safety. I kept her mind off the ice by making fun and starting a game of hopscotch toward the thicker ice. Then I used this staff," he held out his icy staff in example, "to pull her to safety. I switched our positions. Then the ice broke under me and...I became Jack Frost."

Silence reigned after Jack was done. Jamie didn't know what to say. He just gaped at Jack soundlessly. Jack gave him a few moments to absorb his words, and then he smiled.

"But I saved my sister," he said. "She lived a full life, with a husband and kids and everything, because of me. Because I saved her." His smile broadened. "I'm a Guardian."

Jamie gave a small smile of his own. "That's great, Jack. I...I'm sorry about...," he waved his hand at Jack's person when he couldn't come up with a good way to say 'your death, your afterlife, your everything,' "but...I'm glad I met you. If that helps."

"Of course it does," Jack said like it was obvious, causing Jamie to smile a bit more. "Now, as a Guardian, it is my job to help and protect those who believe in the Guardians. So Jamie, what's up?"

The younger teenager flinched. Oh great. The focus was back on him. He would've been happier had Jack never mentioned it.

"I-it's nothing."

Jack lifted an eyebrow at him. "Really? Because you're curled up against your bathtub looking like the world just ended." Jamie looked at the floor guiltily. "Come on, bud, tell me what's eating you. I can't make you feel better if you don't tell me."

Jamie watched Jack watch him. There was a hope hiding in Jack's eyes. He wanted to help. Of course he did. He was a Guardian. And he was Jamie's friend. He always knew exactly what to say or do to make any situation fun. And he was over three hundred years old. And he'd been human once. He might know what to do.

The human teen sighed and dropped his eyes again. "I...There's this...this guy...at school."

"Is someone picking on you?" Jack asked, voice cold like ice.

Jamie shook his head. "No. No. No one's picked on me since middle school," he assured the Guardian of Fun. He could practically feel the ice leave the room. "He's...He's a friend of mine. And he's a little taller than me, and blonde, and he's on the football team, and-"

In the silence after Jamie broke off suddenly, Jack let out a breath. "Jamie." Said boy flinched at just the sound of his own name. "Do you...like this guy?"

Jamie curled his arms around his legs and held on. "I-I-I don't know. I've never...I mean, I've gone on dates with girls in the past. And I...I know what people say about...I don't want to be..." He hid his face in his knees. "I'm already different, Jack."

"Hey. Being different is good. Being the same is boring," Jack said lightly, obviously trying to cheer the younger boy up.

It didn't work.

"But I don't even know if I...What if I come out; what if I tell people I like guys...and then later I realize I was just panicking over nothing and I like girls?" Jamie asked his legs.

It seemed maybe Jamie was wrong. Jack didn't offer a response. Maybe he didn't know the answer. He was over three hundred years old, but he'd died as his life was beginning. It was stupid to think he would have all the answers.

Then, "Do you trust me?"

Jamie glanced up from his knees, lifting his head just enough to peek at the white haired teen through his bangs and over his arms. "What?"

A small, comforting smile. "Do you trust me?" Jamie nodded and the smile gained confidence. "Okay. Then I have an idea."

Jack moved silently and gracefully, kneeling down in front of Jamie. Jamie lowered his knees until he was sitting cross-legged with his hands on his knees. Jack made sure their eyes stayed locked as he reached out and placed his right hand on Jamie's left. Jamie's heartbeat skipped and sped up.

"J-jack?" he asked, unable to tear his gaze away.

Jack shook his head once, his white hair shaking like snow covered branches in a soft breeze. Then he leaned forward, slowly, so slowly. He was all Jamie could see when his other cold hand cupped Jamie's cheek and his cool lips met Jamie's warm ones. Their eyes shut at the same moment, as if one.

It was chilly. Cold was seeping into his skin from every point where Jack was touching him, but still Jamie felt warmth jump in his stomach. He was kissing a guy! He was kissing Jack! And it was exhilarating. He felt like he was flying over the city in nighttime winter air; like he was caught in the middle of the perfect snowball fight; like the glide of skates over ice. His heart was beating double time and, impossibly, he was overly warm.

The kiss was chaste, just a simple touching of lips, but Jamie chased it when it ended. He opened his eyes to find Jack watching him with both a comforting smile and a laughing gaze. It was something probably only Jack could pull off.

"Well?" Jack asked.

Jamie felt his cheeks heating up. "Um...Yeah, that was...uh..."

Jack laughed, but it wasn't mean. He ruffled Jamie's hair affectionately, causing the brunette to frown. Jamie knocked his hand off.

"What?"

"You can't just kiss a guy and then ruffle his hair like he's your brother," he protested.

Another laugh. "Oh, Jamie, you are far more than a brother to me." He stood up while Jamie blushed again, then held out his hand. Jamie took it, noting as always how cool it was in his own, and was hauled to his feet with surprising strength. "You okay?" Jack asked, tilting his head to the side.

No. Not entirely. Jack had clarified what Jamie already feared to be true. In this moment he wasn't afraid, but the fear would return later. This would change everything and nothing at the same time. But, looking on the bright side, Jamie could face it knowing that he would always have Jack Frost on his side. If he could have the support of his sister and mother, and maybe Cupcake, then...he could do anything.

His eyes followed the lines of the tiles for a moment and then raised to meet Jack's blue gaze. "Everything is going to be harder from now on. I know that," he said. Then he managed a small smile. "But I won't let _fear_ stop me. I never have and I never will."

Jack smiled widely and squeezed Jamie's hand. "That's the Jamie Bennett I know." He nodded toward the door. "You wanna go have a little fun outside?"

Jamie nodded. "Yeah. Fun sounds like a good idea right now."

"Good. Because I have a snow day to make, and I could use a little help from my favorite believer."

Jack visited five times that year, a new record. He never said as much, but Jamie was certain that the winter sprite was checking up on him, and he was grateful for it.

Jack was there to visit shortly after Jamie confessed to Ryan, the guy at school, and was turned down. They went ice skating, and Jamie noticed for the first time how careful Jack was with fun on the pond. Jamie joined in on the fun the day Jack helped the local elementary school kids build an entire snow town in the park. One of the most fun days, though, was when it was just the two of them, with Jack bringing dozens of snowmen they'd made together to life, and they pretended they were in a horror movie called Attack of the Snowmen. Jamie had laughed so hard his sides and face hurt, and then he kept laughing.

All things considered, Jamie Bennett had a pretty good year.


	5. Eighteen

Jamie pulled on the cords hanging around Cupcake's shoulders so that an even amount was hanging on either side and then stepped back to look at her. She was still bigger than most girls Jamie had ever known, but it was mostly muscle. She was thinner by far than she'd been as a child, but still thicker than Jamie. Cupcake was the leader of the color guard, the equestrian club, and the school dance team. Jamie was part of the dance team too, mostly because Cupcake ordered him too at first and then he found he actually had fun. His muscles were there but thin, as he spent more time sketching than working out.

"There you go. Perfect," Jamie commented with a smile.

Just as Cupcake started to spin, a voice said "Wow. So this is what a graduation looks like."

Both teens jolted and turned around to find Jack Frost leaning against the wall near them. Jamie only kept in his surprised 'Jack!' because of the hundred other graduates milling about nearby. Instead he took in Jack's appearance. His skin looked whiter than usual, his eyes a darker shade of blue, his hair less windswept. His staff and clothing held more frost.

"Jack," Cupcake said after a short silence, shocked. "It's so great to see you." She smiled.

Jack spun his staff from one hand to the other and smiled in return. "Great to see you too, Cupcake. Sorry for the lack of snow this winter. I had a wicked blizzard in Poland that was just way too much fun," he grinned.

"Don't worry, we had plenty. No snow days though," Cupcake assured him.

"How are you here?" Jamie interjected. "It's June!"

Jack rolled his shoulders. "I know. And was it always so _hot_ during the summer here?" He cracked his neck and pulled at the neck of his hoodie. "Gosh, it must be, what...eighty outside? Seventy in here?"

Cupcake and Jamie nodded.

"Is it okay for you to be out in this heat?" Cupcake asked, taking in the appearance of the winter sprite.

"I'll be fine," Jack assured them with a dismissing wave of his hand. "After all, graduations are only like two hours, right? Or I'll just make a localized frost. Weathermen love freaky weather. Makes their day more interesting," he said lightly.

"Hilary, Jamie, it's about time to get in line," a middle-aged woman named Nancy Overbright, Jamie's math teacher, called.

"Hilary?" Jack ask with a grin, looking Cupcake over as if seeing her for the first time.

Cupcake punched him in the arm, in a friendly yet strong manner, sending Jack toppling over his own staff. "Yeah. Hilary," she said defiantly.

Jack chuckled as he climbed up to perch on the top of his staff, making both teens have to look up at him. "Still Cupcake. But it looks like you two have somewhere to be."

Cupcake nodded. "If you're still here when it's over, come say hi. But don't strain yourself, Frost. Winters wouldn't be the same without you." Then she walked over to find her spot in line.

Jamie hesitated. If anyone looked over, it would look like Jamie was talking to the wall. His other friends would probably think he was talking to Jack, even if they couldn't see him, if it was winter. In June, they would probably think he was psyching himself up for the walk across the stage.

Blue eyes drifted from the growing line back down to Jamie, then he nodded in Cupcake's direction. "You ever wonder how long she'll keep seeing me?"

You ever wonder how long _you'll_ keep seeing me?

Jamie shook his head furiously. "Forever." Jack's gaze turned soft. "I believe in you Jack. Almost everyone in Burgess believes in you, in both elementary and middle school, and even some high schoolers like Cupcake and me. We work hard, just like you. You need to believe too. Believe in _me._ And I'll make sure kids will _always_ believe in you."

If he didn't know Jack was there by the frost designs on his window in the morning, Jamie would know it by the excited talk of the children on the streets. Burgess was possibly the one place in the whole world where ninety-nine percent of its child population believed in Jack Frost. The numbers were a little less for Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, because those Guardians didn't visit like Jack did, but Jamie was willing to bet that the Guardians could feel Burgess burning with belief from anywhere in the world.

Jack looked humbled. He slid back to the ground and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"Wow. I've never heard you apologize before."

A shrug. "There's a first time for everything."

"Jamie Bennett, get in line!"

Jamie turned to face the rest of the room, taking in the mass of students all wearing black and in what might be a vague line. Most people were looking at him with some degree of interest after the shout. He felt a flush creep up his cheeks.

Cold hit the back of his neck and Jamie flipped around again, but no one was behind him. Jack was gone.

Ms. Overbright grabbed Jamie by the robes and half-dragged him to the front of the line, letting go when he was standing next to Abigail Barry, a redhead who had a large smattering of freckles across her cheeks. Jamie rubbed the back of his neck and cast his eyes around the room. Still no Jack. He caught Cupcake's gaze near the back of the line. She gave a half shrug, paired with a half smirk, like she knew a secret. Jamie quickly looked behind him, but Jack wasn't there. So what was Cupcake grinning about?

As he was entering the auditorium where the Burgess High School graduation would take place, he caught sight of Jack standing by the band looking innocently fascinated and overjoyed. He still looked off: not sick, but not normal. The extra frost on his clothes stuck out under the bright lights hanging from the roof.

Jamie's hand flew up to rub the back of his neck as he blushed, remembering the breath of cold air. Had that actually been a breath?

Jamie's thoughts were deterred to more enjoyable, less blush-worthy, ones as the graduation continued. Jack pretended his staff was a trombone, harp, trumpet, flute, and more and mimed playing all the songs with the band, switching instruments every few bars. He shadowed the Principal up to the podium and made fun of him during his entire speech. He took a deep bow every time a new person was introduced, as if he were the person and was deeply honored to be there. Jamie's smile only dimmed for a moment, when the Valedictorian took the stand.

Jack jumped on the pedestal and did a handstand and Lana, a tall girl with long black hair who had never taken part in a single snowball fight or any snow day fun, frowned up at him. Jack faltered and flipped to stand calmly at her side. When he caught Jamie's wide eyed look, about the time Lana was through talking about her many accomplishments during high school, he nodded to Lana and started making funny faces. Jamie did his best not to laugh out loud. Still, _Lana_ believed in Jack?

And was there even more frost on Jack than before? His hoodie was at least lightly coated with spindling white ice all over, heavier on his shoulders and back. His hair looked a bit more limp. It was the heat, Jamie knew, but Jack didn't seem to be reacting to it other than in appearance. Jamie wished he could turn down the air for him.

The best part of the whole event was at the end. After Jamie walked the stage and received his diploma. After he cheered on all his friends. After Jack stood at the end of whatever row of students were walking and high fived the ones who could see him. It was eight students out of about one hundred and fifty, but it was great to see the belief sticking around that well.

Then the principal got up to give a closing speech. Jack stood next to him on the stage, still and silent. Just as the principal gave his final congratulations, Jack glanced at the ceiling. Jamie followed his gaze at the same moment he started hearing people murmur and seeing them point. He gasped.

Snow!

Impossibly, inside and in the beginning of June, it was snowing. Jamie reached out and caught some of the delicate flakes on his palm. They melted almost instantly against the heat of his skin, but their burst of chill made Jamie remember hours of fun in the snow. He wondered if it was having the same effect on everyone else and looked around.

There were blue sparkles in most peoples' eyes, and a few students who hadn't high fived Jack were now pointing at the stage where Jack had moved to crouch atop his staff. Jamie gave him a wide, open smile and a thumbs up. The Guardian grinned like the Cheshire cat.

"Congratulations!" Jack shouted over the noise of people's awe and his fun snow-induced giggles. "I'll see you again in a couple months!"

He flew up to a high open window near the roof, perched on the sill effortlessly, gave a wave, and then the wind took him away. About two dozen students gave a simultaneous cheer and Jamie laughed, full and loud. On the way out he got happy pats on the back from kids he hadn't spoken to in years, all convinced he'd planned the whole thing and thanking him.

"You've got something special there," Cupcake commented when Jamie had a moment to himself.

His cheeks hurt from all the smiling he'd been doing. "What do you mean?"

She lifted an eyebrow at him. "Really? He brings the joy of fun to millions of kids in the world, daily, and yet he was here in his off season? Don't be dense, Jamie. It's not attractive. He came to see you graduate."

Jamie pulled at the fabric of his robes as a light blush dusted his cheeks. "You think?"

Cupcake shook her head. "No. I know." She shoved him sideways with a smile. "Now go find your mom and sister. I'm sure Sophie is coming out of her skin wanting to talk to you."

Jamie laughed. "I'm going to miss you next year, Cupcake," he said, using her nickname. He was the only one to ever call her that these days - and get away with it, at least.

Cupcake smirked. "I'm gonna miss you too, Fruitcake." Then she pulled him into a hug so strong he couldn't breathe.


	6. Nineteen

It was strange being away from home, but Jamie was getting used to it after a full semester at college. It was different during the holidays though. For the first time, Jamie wouldn't be with his family for Christmas. They were going to visit their grandma and aunt in New York, as they had a few times in the past, but Jamie couldn't afford to go. So his mom and sister were with family while Jamie was in his college apartment.

There was a small tree in the living room he shared with four other randomly chosen students. It was decorated with cheap store ornaments because no one had their home ornaments with them, or they didn't want to trust their personal things in the common area. It was a fake tree, the first fake tree Jamie had ever had in his life, and was pre-lit with white lights. Seeing the light glint off the ornaments sometimes made Jamie think it was snowing in the living room while he ate, reminding him of fun winters past and playing outside with his sister.

All of his roommates were freshmen just like him. Nick was going to college to be a cook, Ralph a photographer, and Louis a filmmaker. The four of them hung out all the time, going to parties or restaurants together, school sports days and city events. Nick was the closest to Jamie. They liked the same video games, and he was teaching Jamie how to cook basic meals. Ralph preferred to read then play sports, but he never stayed back when the rest of them went outside. Louis adored watching movies and didn't complain when Jamie requested Christmas movies in October, or movies about fairy tale creatures in general.

Of the three of them, Louis had the most issues with Jamie due to his orientation, but he rarely got trouble from any of them. Nick and Ralph kept a lid on Louis when he had an issue so that Jamie wouldn't hear about it, but he knew and he was grateful to them. Jamie was glad he had them; all of them.

At the end of the semester, Louis and Ralph had gone home for the winter break, but Nick was still here with him in the room. Despite the company somewhere in the dorms, Jamie was in his bedroom, staring out the window at the moon, alone on Christmas Eve. Jack had once told him that the Man in the Moon was real and Jamie believed him. He'd never seen the Man in the Moon, but he had felt that the moon was staring back at him whenever he looked up to the sky.

Jamie wondered if the Man in the Moon granted wishes. People seemed to look at the moon a lot when they made wishes at night in movies, and shooting stars were meant to grant wishes. Maybe shooting stars were the helpers of the Man in the Moon, since they were both in space. Jack had never mentioned 'Manny' granting wishes, but maybe he could. He was apparently pretty powerful, if what Jack told him was true.

"If you can," the human began, "could you grant a few for me? Make sure Christmas is perfect for my family this year. Let me be successful so that people all around the world will believe in Jack, and Santa, and the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, and all the others. And...," he looked down at the windowsill, "I want...Jack...I never want to stop seeing him; to stop believing in him. Can you...can you make sure that never happens?"

When he lifted his gaze to the sky again, the moon seemed to be smiling at him. It gave him hope and he smiled back.

It felt weird to be so serious on Christmas Eve, but it was weird to be away from home on Christmas Eve as well. There would be no presents under the tree tomorrow, no home cooking in the kitchen, and none of the Christmas events that Burgess held annually. Jamie felt unusually out of Christmas spirit this year.

A single snowflake landed on Jamie's nose, even though the window was shut, and he smiled brightly. "Jack!" He turned around to find the winter guardian sitting on the desk across from the bed and laughed. "How did you get in here?"

"I have my ways," Jack revealed cryptically. He hopped off the desk. "More importantly, why do you look so down? It's Christmas Eve!"

Jamie shrugged, getting off his bed to meet Jack in the middle of the room. "I guess I'm missing home. I was worried you wouldn't find me this year."

Suddenly, Jamie realized that he was standing eye-to-eye with Jack. They were the same height. They were equals now. Had they been like this at graduation? From now on, Jamie would be older than Jack, maybe taller than Jack, more wrinkled than Jack. The brunette frowned. Jack noticed the mood change and quickly ruffled his hair, causing Jamie to splutter.

"Come on," Jack announced and bounded to the window. "I know how to make this Christmas fun, even without your family around." He opened the window, hopped onto the sill, and reached his hand back for Jamie. "Grab your coat."

Without hesitation, Jamie did as he was told. He was glad it was still early enough that he hadn't been in his pajamas yet, because it was cold outside and he needed all the padding he could get. He hurriedly pulled on his winter shoes, crawled over his bed to the window, and took the outstretched hand.

When they finally touched ground, they were by a small frozen pond surrounded by pine, spruce, and fir trees taller than any average man. Jamie looked around in awe. It was beautiful here! And it reminded him of home, of the lake where Jack died and was born again. With a small gasp, Jamie turned to face his immortal friend.

"You brought me here because it looks like home, didn't you?" he asked with a knowing lift of an eyebrow.

Jack shrugged and leaned on his staff. "Come here for a minute," he said with a gesture.

When Jamie was within arm's reach, Jack pulled him closer, to the point where their noses almost touched. Jamie'sface heated up - a pink flush that had nothing to do with the cold air. With a wiggle of his eyebrows, Jack bent down to pick up Jamie's right foot. Caught off guard and flustered, Jamie hurriedly reached out to grab hold of Jack's shoulders to keep himself upright. How embarrassing would it be to fall over now?

With gentle seriousness invading his expression, Jack cupped the bottom of Jamie's shoe and then ran his hand along the length of it. As he did, a blade made of ice appeared, attached to the bottom of the shoe.

A gasp escaped Jamie, leaving a foggy cloud in the air. "Wow."

Jack lowered the right foot and then repeated the action with the left foot, leaving Jamie standing in the snow with a pair of ice skates, literally. When Jack was standing upright again, their faces still close together and Jamie still holding on tight to his shoulders, he smiled.

"Feel like skating with the spirit of winter?" Jack asked.

It'd been three years since they went skating on their own. Usually there was a group of people involved; usually kids. And while Jamie loved helping Jack make winter fun for others, and it was fun for him too, he much preferred skating alone with Jack. Knowing he was about to skate with his immortal friend, Jamie felt a rush of excitement run through him. His cheeks were probably pink again and he was grinning impossibly wide, but he didn't care. He tightened his grip on Jack's shoulders, feeling the cold on his bare hands and loving it.

"Definitely."

Jamie swore he saw the ice get thicker and more solid as Jack stepped on it, his feet bare. The ice blades on Jamie's shoes slid across the frozen lake smoothly, perfectly, when he followed. He wobbled for a moment, balancing himself on the unfamiliar blades, and then hurried after the white haired boy. Jack skimmed across the ice as if on skates as well, though his feet weren't touching the ground. He skated backwards, always keeping his eyes on Jamie.

Jack did an exaggerated spin with his hands out to the sides and then did a dramatic bow, causing Jamie to giggle. He gave a simple bow in return and held out his hand. Jack took it calmly, his eyes dancing behind his bangs. He started out slow but quickly gained speed, dragging Jamie around the ice faster than Jamie had ever skated before in his life. For awhile they just made figure eights all around the pond. Then Jack took Jamie's other hand and they spun in tight circles until Jamie was chuckling but almost too dizzy to stay upright.

Jack held still just long enough to know that Jamie wouldn't fall over before releasing his friend's hands. He then darted to the side of the pond to grab his staff from where he'd left it. The elvish boy laughed mirthfully and skimmed over the ice all around Jamie, dragging his staff along behind him, the tip touching the ice.

It was fascinating to watch Jack move. He was fluid and swift like a flurry of snowflakes. The wind through his white hair made him look wild and untamed, and he was. Jack Frost was as free as the wind he rode. Watching him laugh as he twirled around on the ice, Jamie couldn't help but think of how beautiful he was.

Almost as soon as the thought crossed Jamie's mind, Jack looked over at him and gave a happy smile. The brunette smiled in return, so wide that it hurt his cheeks, and the energy bubbling in his chest rose up and burst from his throat. "Jack!"

The Guardian skipped over and grabbed both of Jamie's hands. An instant later they were both pulled upward by the wind, floating several dozen feet over the pond.

"Whoa!" Jamie let out, tightening his grip on Jack's hands - the only thing keeping him airborne. He looked down and gasped another, "Whoa..."

There was a giant, intricate snowflake carved into the ice of the pond.

Jack smirked. "Had to show off my work, right? What do you think?" he asked as they floated down to the side of the pond.

"It's amazing!" the younger male exclaimed. "It's as good as anything I've ever drawn."

Jack swung their still clutched hands. "I've had three hundred years of practice." He held on to Jamie's hands for a few moments more and then let go. "So, do you feel more in the Christmas spirit now?"

Jamie made a show of thinking really hard, then he nodded. "Yeah. But I can think of one more thing that would make tonight the perfect lead up to Christmas."

As if on cue, it began to snow. Their eyes met, blue to brown, and Jack gave an innocent shrug and look that Jamie didn't believe for a second. He reached out and shoved the immortal teen backwards. Jack's eyes widened as he toppled into the snow with an 'oof!' He sat up laughing and Jamie joined in as he flopped down next to the icy sprite.

This was a great way to spend Christmas Eve. Jamie wouldn't have traded tonight for anything. It was magical and fun and exhilarating and...and romantic. Jamie turned his head to look at Jack. The Guardian was watching the snow fall and it gave his first believer a wonderful view of his profile: his soft chin, small nose, perfect skin, and the way his bangs fell into his blue eyes.

Was it wrong for him to be attracted to Jack Frost? Liking guys was one thing, but Jack was a Guardian. He was a protector of children. He was the spirit of Fun and cold weather. He was immortal. Jamie would continue to age, but Jack would always remain eighteen. But...but no one made Jamie feel the way that Jack did: like he could do anything; like everything would be alright, no matter how bad it might get; like he was free to be whatever and whoever he wanted to be. His heart felt light even while it raced at just the thought of Jack. He was nervous but excited whenever Jack was near.

He was pretty sure he was in love with Jack Frost.

Jack turned his smile on Jamie and nudged their shoulders together. "Hey, you know what?"

Jamie blinked a few times in lieu of shaking his head to clear it. "What?"

Pulling his staff from the snow beside them, Jack used it to motion upward. Jamie looked up as golden dust spread out across darkness above them. It was the sandman! Jamie stood up and gaped at the sky. He hadn't seen the sandman in _years!_

Jack shot off into the air, his hand grazing the sand. Holly and mistletoe danced around him for a few moments until he flew over to another strain. This time a school of fish jumped out. They swam all the way down to Jamie before dissolving into dust again and floating back up into the sky.

Jamie laughed out loud. "Cool." As Jack floated back down to his side, Jamie felt his eyes grow tired and frowned. "No. Really?" he whined.

A soft laugh. "Seems Sandy thinks you should be in bed and dreaming," Jack teased.

The brunette rubbed his eyes. "But...no. Tonight's been so perfect. And I'm nineteen. I don't have a bedtime," he complained.

Jack placed a hand on his shoulder, grabbing Jamie's attention, and then slid it down to take his hand. "Better get you home before you fall asleep in the sky."

The flight back to Jamie's bedroom was much quieter than the flight there. The college student wrapped his arms around Jack's neck and Jack held him tight as they ghosted across the sky. Jamie's eyes were heavy but he tried to keep them open. If he couldn't be with Jack, he would at least hold on to this. This feeling of being held in Jack's arms; when it wasn't fun, it was simply the two of them, just being.

The next thing he knew was Nick pounding on his door and the sun shining through his window. On his desk sat a snow globe with a miniature of each of the Guardians and a child form of Jamie delicately carved inside. There was a note with it that read:

_'To: Jamie Bennett, the boy who never stopped believing.'_

Each of the Guardians had signed it. North's handwriting was large and messy, Bunnymund's was thin and jagged, Tooth's was delicate and loopy, Sandman's was small and simple, and Jack's was a basic boy's scrawl but managed to resemble the frost he left on windows.

Jamie knew that he would look at this snow globe all the time. If he ever started to doubt, this gift would remind him he was right - as if he could ever forget. It was the perfect Christmas gift.

He saw Jack only once more that year. Jamie helped him organize and run a massive snowball fight between the children in the park, gaining the Guardians dozens of new believers. They went to a tree farm in the evening, out where no one would see them, and chased each other through the firs and pines. Jack ruffled his hair before leaving, bringing a red flush to Jamie's cheeks. Then he was alone on the street with just the moon and stars glittering down on him.

Looking up, Jamie gave a small wave to the Man in the Moon. He remembered his wishes to the moon on Christmas and decided to hazard making one more.

"Watch out for him for me," he said quietly.

The Moon shone a little brighter and Jamie just knew it was a promise.


	7. Twenty-Six

It was a beautiful day in November: not too cold or too hot, which was good because the wedding was taking place outside. The temperature dropped every day, a warning that winter was coming. Everyone was wearing long sleeves and pants or skirts, except Aunt Janine who was sleeveless.

Jamie looked in the mirror, adjusting his red bowtie for the hundredth time. A taller male with blonde hair in a boyish cut came up behind him and grabbed his wrists, pulling his hands away from the tie before he could ruin it.

He laughed, rich and deep. "Calm down, Jamie. You look like a rabbit about to run."

Jamie didn't even try to pull himself free. He sighed. "I know. I know. I'm just so...nervous."

His wrists were released and the other, younger man backed off. His tux resembled Jamie's, chocolate brown and fitted with a red bowtie and a warm yellow baby carnation boutonniere. The only difference in their suits was that the other man had a matching red vest and Jamie did not.

"You'd think you were the one getting married," the younger male joked and fiddled with his cufflinks.

"Maybe," Jamie agreed, "but it's my little sister's wedding, and that's just as nerve wracking."

The blonde shook his head. "It's _my_ wedding too."

"I know that, Mitch, but you're not my sister," Jamie teased.

"Good thing too, or this would be a really awkward wedding," a familiar voice added.

Jamie looked around the room quickly, but he, Mitch, and Mitch's best friend Garrett were the only people in sight. A frown tugged his lips down. He knew he'd heard Jack's voice...

There was a knock at the door and then Mr. Arthur Bennett poked his head in. All eyes turned to him. "Time to go, boys."

The wedding was perfect. Sophie's theme for the wedding was 'warmth' and she'd pulled it off beautifully. The bridesmaids wore long, slimming red dresses with chocolate brown accents. The bouquet was made up of yellow roses, carnations, and orchids. They were all different shades of yellow, but they made an attractive collection. Like the outfits, the wedding was decorated in chocolate browns, warm reds, and summer yellows. It felt like a mixture between autumn and summer.

Jamie cried during the ceremony, but he stood tall and kept quiet while he did. Sophie looked so beautiful and so happy. She even teared up herself during Mitchell's vows, a wide open smile on her face. It was all Jamie had ever wanted for his dear little sister.

Any thoughts of Jack Frost had vanished from his mind, at least until Sophie and Mitchell shared their first kiss as husband and wife. There was a soft gasp from someone gathered before the pair, Jamie wasn't sure who. The newlyweds pulled back, still beaming. Sophie lowered her eyes to look at the ring on her finger and caught sight of her bouquet.

Every flower was frosted.

It wasn't enough to kill the flowers outright, but it made them glitter in the afternoon light. Sophie's smile turned back up a few watts and she looked over Mitchell's shoulder at her brother. She didn't say anything until everyone was heading inside for the reception, though. Then she let go of her husband for a moment and grabbed hold of her older sibling.

"Did you see? Did you see my bouquet?" she asked excitedly, holding the flowers up for Jamie to see the intricate frost patterns. They were beginning to melt.

He nodded. "It's amazing." He smiled at her. "Looks like Jack Frost kissed the bride."

Sophie giggled and smacked Jamie on the arm. "You always say the funniest things!" She placed her hands on her hips and gave him a mock glare. "Just remember: I'd better get a dance with you later. No chickening out!"

Jamie laughed quietly and nodded. "Of course. Anything on your big day."

He watched her take her seat with a twinge of sorrow. Sophie believed in the Guardians right up until she graduated high school. When she hit the 'real world,' it was like her belief was sucked out of her. She still loved Easter most of all, and she loved fairy tales. But that's all they were to her now: fairy tales. Mitchell was her prince and she was his princess.

Thinking of people forgetting made Jamie remember the day he'd called up Claude and found out that neither of the brothers still believed. It was mid-July and the old group was supposed to get together and hang out. It was a painful afternoon for Jamie, pretending one of the best nights of his life never happened.

Jamie shook his head to clear it of those morose thoughts. This was his little sister's wedding! It was a happy occasion! He took his seat at the front table with the rest of the wedding party and got ready to make his speech.

...

...

Once the dancing was in full swing and the cake had been passed out, Jamie slipped outside. Almost as soon as he was out of view of the reception hall, he heard, "I'd throw a snowball in greeting, but I'm thinking your suit wouldn't like that."

"Jack," Jamie said, placing his hands on his hips and turning around, "I'm the Best Man."

The spirit of winter dropped down from seemingly nowhere, his staff in his right hand. "Exactly my point. And wow, have you gotten taller since I last saw you? You giant!"

The human male laughed. "Not even. Now Mitchell, he's a giant."

Jack leaned on his staff and grinned. "A giant teddy bear maybe. I think North hands out his brothers and sisters to kids on Christmas."

There was silence for a moment, wherein both males just grinned stupidly at each other. Then Jamie snapped his fingers.

"That was really cool, what you did with the flowers. Sophie liked it," he said.

Jack switched his staff back and forth between his hands. "I wanted to contribute. She's a good girl. Bunny misses her." He looked at Jamie through his bangs. "If you got married, I'd be there too."

But not as the man of the hour. Jamie resisted a frown.

He wanted forever with someone, but none of his boyfriends had been that someone. He'd been cheated on by two of them. One thought he was too young, another too old (though the age gap had been only two years). One was really really vain. None of them had believed in the Guardians, but that was fine. They were adults. None of them had ever believed in Jack Frost.

"I'll get married barefoot in the snow," he said softly after a short pause. "There had better be frost on every glass surface, and I want it to start snowing right when I kiss my new husband. Got that, Frost?"

A nod. "Absolutely."

Jamie nodded to, as if sealing a deal. He stared into Jack's blue eyes for a long while in silence. In those eyes he saw the constant spark of fun, but also nerves. Jamie was twenty-six. He'd lasted this long still maintaining his belief in the Guardians, but how much longer? Was that what Jack was thinking? He thought of it himself all the time. Would he wake up one day just not believing?

"Um," Jamie started, then cleared his throat. He motioned back toward the reception hall. "Mitchell has a thirteen year old sister, and there are a bunch of little cousins running around, if you want to go spread some fun?"

That brought a bright smile to Jack's face and cleared the nerves from his gaze. "Of course! It's always a good time to have some fun. Come on." He motioned for Jamie to follow and then zipped off toward the door, brushing his hand over Jamie's shoulder as he went.

The brunette took a deep breath, shutting his eyes for a moment. God, he still loved that spirit. Even eight years later, when even if Jack was human it would seem wrong. But even just that brush made his heart flutter. Hearing his voice made it soar. Jamie was hopelessly besotted. No one would ever compare to the spirit of winter.

"Jamie!" Jack called out.

With a shake of his head, Jamie opened his eyes. There would be time to consider these feelings later, after Jack was gone. Right now he wanted to spend all the time he could with his friend, his sister, and their families. He turned around and followed the Guardian inside. There was bound to be some chaos in a few minutes and he wouldn't miss it for the world.

As predicted, Jack started mischief from the moment he was inside. He made frost patterns on the cups of the children to sneakily get their attention, led them in a conga line like dance all around the room, and kept them giggling and entertained for a long while.

The chaos began when Jack made a small patch of ice on the dance floor. It was very little, but large enough to slip on. People slid all over, turning smooth dances into wild thrashing. The flailing made everyone, even most of the adults, chuckle. The only person who did fall, however, crashed into another person, who tried to catch them self on a nearby table, knocking over a wine glass which landed in the lap of a young woman, who screeched and waved her arms around, smacking her boyfriend in the face and making him stand up abruptly, right into a server walking by with slices of cake for the guests, sending cake flying onto the people nearest. Jamie's snort was lost in the cheers and giggles of the children around the room, but he thought maybe Jack heard it anyway, even over his own laughter.


	8. Thirty

Jamie felt old. Like really, really old. He was _thirty._

"Unul Jay-jay-jay-jay!" chanted the little blonde girl as she bounced over to him. Her hair was pulled into twin pigtails with pink ribbons, her eyes were blue, and she was dressed in her warmest clothes.

He laughed. "Hey there, Zoe!" he greeted, kneeling down on the floor beside her and taking her hands while she continued to bounce in place. "You ready to go play in the snow?"

"Yes yes yes!" she cheered, and started tugging Jamie toward the front door.

Jamie had to squint at the bright sunshine on the pure white snow once he stepped outside. He smiled, though. It was the first snow of the season and Jack had made it perfect. Jamie only got a moment to take it in before Zoe tore her hand from his and took off into the yard with a pleased squeal. It made Jamie smile.

His smile vanished when she slipped on the stairs and crashed into the sidewalk at the bottom. "Zoe! Are you alright?!" he cried out, hurrying down the steps to her side while she began to cry.

Just as he knelt down beside her, another person dropped down from the sky. Jamie turned his head to look at the other male at the same time that his knees hit the ground.

Jack!

Jack threw Jamie a reassuring smile before he reached out and tapped Zoe on the nose, lightly, just enough to nip her. There was a magic glitter around her eyes and then they widened. Jack smiled.

"Hey there, bedbug," he greeted her. "Do you mind if Jack Frost nips at your nose?" He stood up, Zoe's eyes following him, and then floated himself over to sit on the fence.

Zoe let out a delighted cry and jumped up, completely forgetting she'd fallen at all. "You fly!"

Jamie let his eyes run over his niece briefly, but she didn't seem to be hurt, so he relaxed. He placed a hand on Zoe's shoulder, calling her attention to him. "He does so much more than fly."

Even as he spoke, a little snow bunny hopped through the air toward them. Zoe watched with astonished eyes, her mouth hanging wide open, as the bunny jumped around her head. It stopped in front of her and wiggled its nose against hers. The cold made her giggle and put her mitten-covered hands over her nose. The bunny hopped up above Zoe's head and then burst into a thousand snowflakes. It was just like when Jamie first believed.

Zoe looked to Jamie with wide eyes. "Jack Fost?" Jack laughed once from his spot on the fence.

Jamie nodded, happy that she remembered the stories he'd told her. "Jack Frost."

It was obvious why the Guardians protected kids. The look of pure joy and excitement on Zoe's face was enough to make Jamie feel like he could fly, all by himself. Then his niece barreled out into the yard toward Jack, ripping Jamie from his thoughts.

"Unul Jay! Come on!" she called over her shoulder.

Jamie helped Zoe to make a small snowball, and Jack blew on it to make sure it stayed a ball. Then Zoe rolled it around the yard, amazed as it got bigger and bigger and bigger as she went. They had to stop her after awhile because the ball was getting too big, and their snowman would be huge if they kept it going. Between the three of them, their snowman was built in only a few minutes, each body part as close to perfectly circle as it could be.

To make it even more fun, Jack blew a single snowflake at it. When the snowflake hit, the snowman shook its head and seemed to sneeze, and then it smiled. Zoe squealed in delight. It wasn't long before she was dancing around the yard with her new friend, holding on to the stick arms of the living snowman. Jack was laughing, leaning on his staff, and Jamie couldn't take his eyes off the young spirit.

"You know," Jack said, the smile on his face even though he stopped laughing, "You always look younger when you're happy."

Jamie started, a blush creeping onto his cheeks as Jack turned knowing eyes on him. "I-I...Sorry. I just. I feel so old all the time."

Jack's eyes glittered. "Why? Bones creaking? Having trouble staying up late? Getting up in the morning? Can you not pass solid foods anymore?" he teased.

With a laugh, Jamie lightly punched Jack's arm. "Shut up."

"You're not old, Jamie. I mean," he shrugged, looking suddenly uncomfortable, "you are...to still believe. But...you're not even twice my age yet. So stop worrying. You can start saying you're old when your hair turns grey. Until then, get out there and dance."

Suddenly Jack was behind him, pushing him forward toward little Zoe and the dancing snowman. Jamie stumbled and fell into a pile of snow before he even made it halfway to the pair. When he sat up, covered in icy flakes, he heard both Zoe and Jack laughing and couldn't help but grin.

"You're asking for it, Mr. Frost!"

He flipped around, throwing whatever snow was in his hands back towards the immortal teen. Zoe giggled and jumped when some of the loose snow landed in her hair. The snowman slid in front of her with its thin arms up in the air, trying to protect her.

Jack and Jamie tossed loose snow at each other for a short while, then moved on to actual snowballs. But when one errant ball knocked the nose off the snowman, Zoe cried out in terror and they stopped to fix him. Then Jamie asked if maybe Zoe would want to build her snowman some snow family members, and that's how they spent the rest of the day. Jamie kept glancing at Jack to find Jack hurriedly looking away, his pale cheeks turning red.

After a few hours, the sun was going down, and so was Zoe, so they decided to call it a night. Jack tried to leave but, when he knelt down to hug her goodbye, Zoe latched her arms around his neck and refused to let go - like mother like daughter - so both men escorted the four-year-old to her room to put her to bed.

"We're lucky Sophie and Mitch are out for awhile yet," Jamie noted as they walked up the stairs. "It'd be pretty hard to explain to them how Zoe was floating."

Jack shrugged. "Maybe she'd start believing again," he said simply.

Once her snow clothes were off, Zoe was laid in her bed. This time, when Jack tried to leave, she grabbed on tight to the sleeve of his hoodie. It was the same hoodie he'd been wearing the day Jamie met him and it, like Jack, had remained unchanged by time.

"I gotta go," Jack whispered to Zoe. "There's a lot of world that needs snow."

"Nooooo," Zoe whined sleepily.

With a smile and a feeling of nostalgia, Jamie knelt down beside Jack and wrapped his arm around the smaller male's shoulders. He was looking at his niece though. "Don't worry, Zo. Jack will come and visit you, okay?"

Jamie could feel Jack's eyes on him, but he focused on the girl in the bed. Zoe made a noise of disbelief.

"No, really. Every winter. Every snowflake. That's Jack inviting you out to play. Even when you don't see him," he assured her. "As long as you believe, he'll be with you."

Zoe was still looking at Jack when she finally gave in to sleep. Only then did Jack pull out of her lax grip and stand up, Jamie standing with him. When Jack looked up into Jamie's eyes, he laughed softly.

"What?" Jamie asked as they walked out of the room.

"Nothing, nothing really. I just forgot that I have to look up to you now," he joked, still chuckling to himself.

They went to Jamie's room. Well, it was the guest room, but Jamie was almost the only guest that stayed the night at his sister's house, so it was usually considered "Jamie's Room." Once they were there, and the door was shut, Jamie ran a listless hand through his hair.

He was thirty. This was a mile marker. He was considered 'old' by a lot of people now. He had a lot of responsibilities: bills, cleaning his house, babysitting his niece, making deadlines, filling commissions. He no longer got Christmas presents from Santa, just from his friends and family. He'd long since lost his last baby tooth. And he hosted Easter Egg Hunts instead of participating. His dreams were usually filled with the open sky and lightly falling snow, with a happy laughter and the moon shining bright overhead - whenever he remembered his dreams at all, that is. Only Jack continued to visit, to play, to hang out, to think that Jamie was as young as he ever was.

Speaking of.

"Hey, Jack," Jamie said, dropping his hand from his hair.

Jack had been nudging things around on the desk, checking out the sketches Jamie had been working on that day, and jolted like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He tried to play it cool, wrapping his hands around his staff and leaning against it smoothly. "Yeah?"

"Would you mind modeling for me? My agent wants a new piece by the end of the month and, well, drawing the real thing is much better than relying on memory."

The look on Jack's face was one of astonishment. He was floored. "You...You want to paint me?"

A shrug. "I've painted and sketched North, and Bunny, and Tooth, and Sandy, and even done a charcoal of Pitch. I've sold some works inspired by you before, but...I always wanted to wait until you could model for me before I tried painting you, really you." He could feel the blush on his cheeks and saw a similar pink tone on Jack's cheeks.

For a few moments, they just watched each other. Jack's mind seemed to be a million miles away, and his grip on his staff switched from lax to tight to lax and back again while he thought. It felt like he could see straight through Jamie, which didn't help the blush to recede at all. Finally, Jack let out a breath and nodded.

"I'd be honored to model for you," he said, with a too deep bow and a dramatic tone. He looked up at Jamie from his bow and grinned.

Jamie snorted and grabbed Jack by the arm. "Now I'm wondering if you can be serious long enough for me to even sketch your face," he said, though none of his annoyance was real. He knew Jack knew this too by the answering snicker as he manhandled the winter spirit onto his bed.

Jamie recognized a gleam in Jack's eyes and held tight to his arm.

"No Titanic jokes," he preempted, and Jack frowned. Jamie wasn't sure he could handle Jack lying naked on his bed, anyway. He might literally die. "Just...Uh, just sit naturally...you know, like you would any time."

Jack chose to sit with his legs crossed, facing Jamie, his staff leaning on his shoulder and protruding up behind him, his hands clasped lightly around the frosted wood. It was a good position, one that he would be able to hold for awhile without getting tired. Jamie took his large art pad from where he'd piled his stuff in the room, grabbed his pencils, and began to sketch. He wished they were at his own apartment, where he had all the tools and paints that he would need to really make a masterpiece of Jack. For now he would sketch, so that the image would be immortalized, so that he could look at it and transfer it to canvas with paint later.

They talked while he worked. Jack wanted to know what else Jamie had made pictures of in the almost decade since he'd sold his first painting. So Jamie told him: mermaids lounging on a beach, or playing under water; Santa in his amazing sleigh, and the reindeer; a group of yetis, the yetis with the elves, and the elves by themselves; the Easter Bunny and his giant egg warriors; Sandman riding a sand dinosaur and sending dreams out to the children; the Tooth Fairy and her little tooth warriors; sketches of each of the Guardians doing various things; the Groundhog, Mother Earth, Father Time, King Leprechaun, Manny, tooth mice, the Grand Hart of the Forest, all based on how Jack had described them to him.

"I'm also pretty known for my scenery," Jamie revealed. "I'm probably getting as good as you at making frost patterns."

He'd sketched snowy landscapes in places from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York to London, Paris, Madrid, Florence, St. Petersburg, Tokyo, Sapporo, Hong Kong, and more despite never having traveled out of the States. Farm houses and penthouses and houses in between. Windows, trees, bushes, cars, glasses of water, roads, mailboxes. Almost everything he'd sketched or painted or drawn in some way had been frosted more often than not. He'd even drawn a beach in Florida and the Sydney Opera House with frozen waves and snow falling from the sky. Not all of these creations had sold, but Jamie was happy to give them away to friends and family as gifts for holidays as well, or decorate his own apartment with them. He was The Winter Artist.

"Wow," Jack breathed out. His eyes, usually full of joy and fun at all times, were full of wonder. North would be proud, Jamie thought absently.

Jamie set his pencil down and frowned lightly. "What?"

A shake of the head. "You. I see you a lot, especially by Guardian standards, but you've...you've accomplished a lot. I'm...," he trailed off, looking lost for words. Jamie waited patiently for him to find them. "I guess I'm just...really proud of you."

Now it was Jamie's turn to shake his head as he started to sketch again. "All my life, all I've wanted was to help you, to be a Guardian like you. I want to help kids to believe in you. In all of you," he explained. "Because _I'm_ proud of _you._ You've accomplished a lot more than I have."

"That's because you're young."

Jamie's eyes snapped up to Jack at the serious, soft tone. When he had Jamie's undivided attention, Jack gave a little smile.

"So stop worrying about your age. You're young, Jamie. You'll always be young to me."

"I don't want to be a child to you, Jack," Jamie admitted before he even realized he was speaking. He gripped the pencil tighter in his hand. "I don't want you to see me as a little kid. I'm more than that." He frowned. "I want to be so much more than that."

Jack's expression fell into one like sadness, and his eyes averted to the bed where his staff made the lightest of indents in the sheets. Jamie waited, but the winter spirit didn't say anything. After a few moments of silence, he went back to sketching, just adding in the last details. The rest of the night was spent quietly. Jamie didn't want to speak and reveal what he'd meant by his words; his affection for Jack. The best he could guess was that Jack didn't know how to respond, didn't know what he meant and didn't want to say the wrong thing. Minutes dragged on until Jamie was finally finished, and then Jack left, still in silence.

Regardless of what Jack said, Jamie was getting old. For a sprite that was used to dealing with children, a thirty year old man must be nearly impossible to talk to. Even though he could still see Jack, still believed in him with all his heart, he was going to lose Jack. They would slip away from one another like ex-lovers did; when they no longer knew how to act around one another, how to cope with the differences between them.

Except that he and Jack were not all that different. Jamie still held joy and hope and wonder in his heart. He still dreamed as big as the sky. His body was changing, that was all. But that would be what tore the last Guardian from him.

So Jamie sketched and, over the course of the next weeks, Jamie painted and painted and painted. He would paint and sketch and draw; using oil, watercolors, acrylics; charcoal, markers, crayons. He would draw in sand and glass and chalk. He'd burn, dye, and stain every surface he could. He would immortalize the Guardians for the world to see, all of them, but especially Jack. He used the sketch he made of Jack that night to create dozens of works dedicated to the Guardian of Fun over the next several months.

Because he wasn't going to lose him - them - not if he didn't have to, and the world wasn't going to lose them either.


	9. Thirty-Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! Hope you guys have liked this story!

It was right at the height of summer.

Ironic.

It was on the hottest day of the year, and the day furthest from winter on the calendar, when the brightest light on The Globe went out.

Jack was making people slip and slide with a freak cold front in Winchester when he felt it. It felt like when Pitch broke his staff, only a million times worse. It felt like his heart had literally been crushed and exploded at exactly the same moment, sending pain shooting through his entire being. It took everything in him to find the strength and will to fly away to the North Pole.

He literally fell in through the roof, right onto the Globe, startling a dozen elves and three yetis. He panted into the surface of the Globe, eyes closed and trying to catch his breath, to stop the pain. When Jack opened his eyes, he was staring at Pennsylvania. It was lit up with bright lights all over, thousands and thousands of children who believed, but...it was darker...it was...

"Jamie," he gasped out.

He was crying when North finally got him to the ground. When Sandy showed up that night, Jack already knew. Still, Sandy played out the event for Jack with his sand.

Jamie, walking along, wearing a short sleeved shirt and smiling. It wasn't the most accurate portrayal, but for sand it was very impressive. A little boy with a book, walking with his head in the pages. Bigger kids, grabbing the book from the boy, teasing him, then throwing the book. The bullies vanished but Sandy played out the book flying through the air and landing on the ground, the little boy following it, bending down to pick it up. He mimed Jamie, shocked. There was a car. Then Jamie was running for the boy, pushing him out of the way.

Jack shut his eyes and North knocked Sandy on the arm to stop the sand before the end.

"I am sorry, Jack," North rumbled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He could only let out a shuddering breath in reply and shake his head at first. "I...I wasn't even..."

"It is middle of the summer, Jack," North interrupted, not unkindly, and lowered his hand. "You could not have done anything." He shook his head. "Remember: all humans, all creatures, either are chosen as Guardians and spirits...or they die. This is the way of things. Jamie lived a very good life."

Except he never got married. As much as it would have pained Jack to see Jamie wed, he wished with all his heart that it could have happened. He would make it snow, just like Jamie wanted it to, right when they kissed. There would be frost on every surface. Jamie would wear white, like the snow, and he'd let Jack nip his nose and frost his boutonniere.

He never had kids. Jack could see him sitting in a cozy little apartment, or a house like he'd grown up in. There would be a little boy and a little girl, maybe twins, and Jamie would tell them stories of the Guardians. Jack would teach them to build a snowman, how to ice skate. He'd visit all the time. All the time.

He never grew old.

"I would give...everything," Jack forced out, pressing the heels of his hands into his burning eyes, "to save his life."

North pat him on the shoulder, but it offered no comfort. "Take a few days off. It is summer. The world can miss you for awhile."

It felt like a funeral. North must have told the others, or maybe they noticed the missing light in Pennsylvania too, because Toothiana and Bunnymund came to visit in the days following. Tooth found him sitting by a window, and she hugged him tight and wept. Baby Tooth sat on his shoulder for hours after Tooth had to leave, catching what few tears he cried on her beak and wiping his cheeks with her small hands. He had moved to the Globe room by the time Bunny showed up three days later, watching it spin on as if nothing had changed. At first, the pooka didn't seem to know what to do, and then he hesitantly set one paw on Jack's back.

"He was...he was good," he said.

Jack spared him a glance and then focused his eyes on Pennsylvania again. "The very best."

He spent a week wandering listlessly around the workshop. It felt like he'd lost his connection to the world.

The other Guardians didn't understand. They had never died. They had never experienced death. They had never gotten so close to someone, had someone believe in them so much. Jamie had never been _just_ a child to Jack, he was _the_ child. And as he grew older, as Jack saw the man he turned into, he became so much more. Jack had never cared for another the way he cared about Jamie.

He'd been so scared of losing Jamie, of coming to visit one day and finding that Jamie no longer believed, that he had held back so much. In the week after Jamie died, Jack regretted. He regretted not visiting more often; not making Jamie happier; regretted not holding Jamie close; regretted not telling him how important he was.

He looked up into the night sky on the night he decided to finally leave the Pole. The Man in the Moon looked back. "What kind of Guardian am I...if I couldn't protect him?" he asked, eyes glistening in the moonlight. "He believed so much...for so long...He did so much for us, for me. If I couldn't protect the person...the person I love...how can I protect anyone?"

That night, Manny told him something very important. Jamie had given Jack a great gift: belief. That belief gave Jack more power than ever, matching maybe even the Sandman. Jack had a responsibility, then, to use that power to bring joy and fun to the children of the world.

He told Jack to remember that he was not alone. He would never be alone again.

So Jack left the North Pole and resumed his Guardian duties. He laughed with kids in Russia, horse played with children in the United States. He brought a freak blizzard to Australia, just to mess with Bunny.

Then one day, about two months after Jamie's death, Jack found himself back in Burgess, Pennsylvania. He wasn't there to make it snow - it wasn't quite cold enough yet for that, though he could change that at a thought. He just wanted to go home for a bit.

With a simple tap of his staff, the water froze over in the lake where he died. Jack walked over it, feeling the ice beneath his feet, and took a deep breath. He would always love Burgess. He would always love Jamie Bennett, too.

He remembered having city wide snowball fights, and sending Jamie on his first date; Attack of the Snowmen and flying together through the city; snow in May and a unexpected valedictorian believer; ice skating together and tree farms and Christmas lights; a wedding and a first birthday.

He remembered his first kiss.

Jack touched his lips softly and stopped walking. That kiss had felt like the whole world was dawning on a brand new day all at once, and all the hope and joy and light that came with that. It felt like he would never be invisible again.

Looking down at the ice beneath his bare feet, Jack sighed and gripped his staff in both hands. "I'm the Guardian of Fun, but I keep losing it. I can't...I can't stop thinking about you." He held his staff tighter and clenched his eyes shut. "God, Jamie...I miss you so much. If you can hear me...There's one last thing I need to say to you." He took several deep breaths and leaned his head against his staff as well. "I love you. I'm sorry I didn't say it before. But it's true. I have for awhile now. I love you so much."

"I love you too."

Jack's eyes shot open and he flipped around. There, standing on the edge of his iced lake, was Jamie! But, but not. Because it couldn't be.

He looked like Jamie had at eighteen. His hair was vibrant brown and cut in a boyishly handsome way, with the sun glinting through it like gold. He wore a long sleeved white shirt under a dark blue, hooded winter vest, and light brown pants that disappeared into deep brown canister-style boots that went halfway up his calf.

"J-J-Jamie?" Jack managed in a shocked breath.

The boy on the shore nodded, looking rather sheepish but very happy. "Yeah."

The winter spirit took a shaky step forward and then stopped. "You died."

The smile vanished from Jamie's face, and he looked somberly at the ground. "Yeah." He shook his head and looked up at Jack again. "I don't know how...but I'm here, Jack."

Jamie pushed on the ground like he was about to run, but instead he was propelled gently through the air. He floated over and landed in front of Jack, close enough to touch. Jack gasped but forced himself not to back away.

"You just-!" Jack took several deep breaths, looking Jamie over with wide eyes.

He reached out a shaking hand and placed it on Jamie's chest. It was solid. He let go of his staff to place his right hand on Jamie's cheek, and it clattered to the ice. Jamie's cheek was smooth and perfect and real. Jamie's eyes were wide now too, and he reached up to take Jack's right hand in his own left one.

"You're not cold," he whispered. "Oh my god."

Jack felt a smile breaking out across his face. "You're a Guardian."

A matching smile lit Jamie's face. "That's what the Moon said." He shook his head. "Sorry it took so long. I didn't even know my own name when I first woke up."

That got a startled laugh from Jack. Maybe everyone who died before becoming a Guardian lost their memories. And it was just one more thing they had in common now.

"What does that matter?" he said with a teasing lilt. "You're a Guardian." His face went serious. "North is going to want to host a party to celebrate. All that music," he groaned.

Jamie laughed and threw his arms around Jack in a tight hug. Jack quickly reciprocated, gasping and giggling in his shock and joy. It was like being seen for the first time all over again. They stood there, embracing one another, for what felt like hours. It was a hug to chase away sorrow and loneliness and fear.

"So," Jamie murmured into Jack's ear. "Is it alright to love you now?"

"It's always been alright."

Jack pulled out of the hug just enough to see Jamie's eyes, shimmering with unshed tears of joy, and then leaned in for a kiss. It was just like the first time: light, hope, joy, freedom, the rush of the wind carrying him fast through the sky, home.

It took a few hours, but when Jack was able to bear sharing Jamie, they both flew up to the North Pole. Jamie thrilled at being able to fly on his own, and they laughed as they danced around one another in the sky. With barely a thought, Jamie could call strong winds to give them both a boost of speed that lasted for thousands of miles. They would have to figure out what other gifts the Man in the Moon had given him soon.

The workshop delighted Jamie. He was like a little kid again, marveling at every toy and paint and yeti. He genuinely loved the elves. North was surprised to see him, but he gave a booming laugh and roped Jamie into a hug so fierce it could probably break a normal person's back. Then he gave one to Jack as well.

"So," he said jovially, "you control the wind, eh? What do you call yourself?"

Jamie blushed brightly. "Jamie...Frost."

Jack blushed just as brightly and avoided looking at North's overly pleased and knowing expression.

"And what is your center? Do you know?"

Jack thought back on Jamie's life. What of his old life would carry over to this life? He'd been a brilliant painter, letting the world know of the Guardians through his art. He'd been excellent with kids too. Every child he spoke to seemed to be able to see the Guardians. He'd been the strongest believer in the Guardians for his entire life.

"That one's easy," Jamie insisted, grinning and glancing at Jack. "Belief."

 _fin_.


End file.
